SasuSaku A Chance Encounter
by angelbabe21
Summary: A chance meeting between Sasuke and Sakura.


A SasuSaku fanfiction - A Chance Encounter

It was such a long time since Sakura found herself on a D-Rank mission, solo at that, that she realized how much she and the rest of her peers have advanced since those days. She was on the second of a four day trip back to Konoha with her simple escort mission completed.

She was moving along a river, and decided to stop to rest. Sakura felt she deserved it after traveling non-stop since early morning. It wasn't until she stopped that she realized it was almost sunset, and she decided to pick a location to set up camp for the night.

Sakura sat against a tree not to far away from the river, and felt a sense of accomplishment looking at the preparations she made for another night outdoors. Once again, she found herself comparing herself to how she was back then, to who she was now.

_"Back then,..I was...."_

Knowing how she got when she thought to much about the past, she quickly snapped herself out of it, and remembered, she still had to catch her dinner before it completely got dark. With a sense of determination, she was ready to fish.

Meanwhile, someplace not to far off, someone that Sakura knew a long time ago, was on a sort of solo mission of his own.

With the constant presence of his teammates, and now even Akatsuki, he felt it was time to take some time to train, and reflect on recent events, alone. His teammates had sensed this for a while, and respectfully gave him his space.

Besides, they knew they'd be able to locate him if he was in danger. With the way Karin wanted him, she would easily be able to find him at an instant. With that, he was off on his own. His intentions weren't to stray to far, but far enough to be alone.

Not knowing what he was in store for, he set out towards the river. Even though it could be considered part of Akatsuki's base, this was unfamilar territory, but not having sensed any danger, he continued on his path, only to interrupt what seemed to be a common mugging.

Ignoring the situation going on, he kept walking nonchalantley on his way, when one of the theives said something slick.

_"Look, it seems we have an outsider in our midsts...Wanna get robbed too, punk?!!"_

Still, not wanting to get involved, he kept walking. The other theif steps in front of him, now blocking the path he was walking. They are now eye to eye. Both men, seemingly unflinching. The theif begins to speak.

_"You must really think highly of yourself to act like you didn't hear what he said...You obiviously aren't from around here..so you must not know who you're dealing with!!! Don't worry,...we'll teach you right now..Don't look down on us!!!!"_

The theif threw a punch into what seemed like thin air. The man that was in front of him a moment ago, was instantly gone. He was now directly behind him, but before the theif even realized, he was knocked out.

The other theif stood there in awe, so much so, his grip on his vitcim went completely loose. Taking the opportunity, the victim made his escape. At this point though, the theif was to much focused on the man that downed his partner.

Well knowing the man was on a different level altogether, the theif charged into battle anyway.

_"WHY YOU.....I'LL KILLLL YOOOUU!!!!!!!"_

Lunging at the man with full force, katana in hand, once again, it seemed like only thin air was struck.

_"Wha..WHAT?!!...WHERE THE HELL DID YO-"_

A punch to the stomach didn't allow the theif to finish his sentence. Glancing down momentarily at both unconscious men, he continued on his way. He suddenly stopped when he felt a slight presence. He paused for a moment, and closed his eyes to focus on where it was coming from.

_"Hmph...You might as well come out...You were masking your presence very well up until a few moments ago. Was it seeing your underlings beaten so easily that made you slip up?"_

The trees ruffled slightly when suddenly the hiding figure appeared in front of him.

_"I must admit, they were beaten pretty easily...but then again, they're regular guys, if you know what I mean...they're not special like you and me, am I right?... We are ninja, they are not....Well, using the term 'ninja' loosely here, I should have said 'Rouge Ninja'...haha...Isn't that right, Uchiha Sasuke?!!!!"_

Sasuke's eyes widened a bit with surprise when the man spoke his name. He had noticed in the time the man was speaking, he was wearing a Cloud forehead protector around his upper right arm with the symbol crossed out.

_"Hmph...So I guess I'm pretty well known. It seems your a rouge ninja from your village as well, but I've never heard of you...and I really don't give a damn who you are. If you want to fight, then get on with it..if not, get the hell out of here."_

The rouge ninja seemingly brushed aside Sasuke's smugness.

_"Ya know, I've heard stories of that thing you have, what's it called,..Shar-in-gan, or something?.. Anyway, yeah, I've heard many stories about it, and it would probably would be smart of me to leave....But I won't...You see, when I meet cocky little bastards like you, something inside me makes me wanna KICK THEIR ASSES!!!"_

He charges at Sasuke. He's faster than Sasuke thought. They engage in taijutsu at first. Sasuke's skills are evident as the rouge ninja is not landing a single of his lightning fast hits on Sasuke. He pulls back and attempts to form a hand seal, but having activated Sharingan, Sasuke prevents this easily by attacking him.

Each attempt by the rouge ninja, ends up in failure. Every attack thrown at Sasuke, doesn't connect. Not wanting to continue a pointless battle, Sasuke speaks.

_"Give up. We are on different levels. If you don't want to die...give up."_

He glances fiercely at the rouge ninja, who is on one knee, and out of breath. He turns his back to him, and begins to walk away, heading towards the river. Clenching his fists tightly, feeling the humiliation of just having been completely defeated by Sasuke, he decides to get him the only way he could think of at that moment.

While still on one knee, he quickly takes every single exploding tag he has, and makes a dash towards Sasuke.

_"YOU SMUG BASTARD!!!!"_

He throws two kunai's with exploding tags at each of the four closet trees surrounding Sasuke. Sasuke jumps up to avoid the explosions, only to notice the rouge ninja predicted he would jump up, and jumped up as well with the remaining of his explosive tags covering parts of his body. He grabs Sasuke in an attempt to blow him up along with himself.

_"DIE UCHIHA SCUMMM!! HAHAHAHA!!!"_

Sasuke, with his arms being held, and only seconds to think, head butts him with all of his strength. With his grip released, he kicks himself off of his chest, just when then the explosions were about to go off.

Having created some distance avoiding the complete full force and damage, he covers his face with his arms, bracing for impact, but is no match for the force from the explosion pushing him back. Sasuke flies through the air, still tightly bracing his arms. The force is pushing him through tree branches along with the debris caused by the blast.

Dazed and bruised, he finally hits the ground hard, and rolls into the river. He comes up, floating on his back, alive, but unconscious. The river current will lead him somewhere he would never have expected.

______________________________________________________________________________

It had been a few hours since the sun had finally set, and Sakura was finished eating, and putting out the fire she made to cook the fish. The moon was full and beautiful that night. She decided to sit close to the river and admire the moon.

While looking up, she began thinking about everyone back at the village, and wondering what they were up to. She knew Naruto was out on an important mission, and hoped he was alright. She knew it would be a while before he got back, and then began to ponder what kind of mission she'd have when she returned to the village.

She looked down at the river, and noticed how pretty it looked with the bright light from the moon shinning on it, and also how peaceful it sounded. Suddenly, she had an unexpected flashback of the night 'they' parted ways.

_"That night...It was quiet like this, that night...The moon wasn't full...but it sure was pretty....I wonder what your doing now...."_

A tear fell from her eye. She quickly wiped it.

_"What am I saying...that was a long time ago...Things are different now...He severed all bonds, he's made that clear so many times. Let it go, Sakura."_

She pulled her kness close to her chest, and laid her chin on top of them. She continued to stare at the river deep in thought when she noticed a large figure floating in the river. She realized it was a person when it floated more into the light.

Her medic side kicked into high drive, and she stood up to help. Sakura helped the person up, and out of the water. Slowly, she helped him lay down, and gently placed his head on the ground. When she moved away, and the moonlight caught his face, she realized who it was.

_"N-No way....It can't be....."_

She wanted to say his name, but her throat tightened as tears began welling up in her eyes. They quickly looked up and down his body, from head to toe, and she realized he was hurt. It wasn't life threatening, but he was still in pain.

She knelt down beside him, and put her hands over his chest, and began healing him. She noticed he had minor burns on his arms, and legs. She didn't want to look at his face because it would distract her from her jutsu. She needed to concentrate on healing him.

It didn't take long for her to heal him. Sakura took a deep breathe, and closed her eyes.

_"What am I doing?...It's him...He's a wanted criminal...He wanted to kill us.."_

She opened her eyes and looked right down at his face. She wanted to touch it to see if he was real. Even though it was night time, the moonlight shown down brightley enough to see his face clearly. She extended her hand, but hesitated, and decided not to.

Sakura stood up and walked to a nearby tree and sat down. The place where he was laying was close to the river, and lit up by the moonlight. She was under a tree, very shaded, almost pitch black. She found herself staring at him.

About ten minutes later, he woke up. When he opened his eyes, he was looking straight up at the bright full moon. He stared for a moment, and then sat up. He had a quick flashback of what happened.

_"Bastard..."_

He thought about it for a moment, and then realized his body should have been aching all over, but it wasn't. He should have had some burns on his arms from the blast. He looked, and there were none.

_"I'm healed....Somebody healed me...."_

He stood up, and looked at the river. He then turned around, and saw a silouette of someone sitting down. He reached down, and pulled out a kunai.

_"Who the hell are you and what do you want?"_

A familiar voice answerd by simply saying his name.

_"Sasuke.."_

His eyes widened, as the figure stood up and walked forward a few feet into the light.

_"Sakura....What are you doing here?"_

Her face was serious. She did not answer him. She glared over at him, as he looked almost suprised to see her. He quickly caught her vibe, and his face got serious as well. They had been looking at eachother for a while without realizing, until Sasuke finally spoke.

_"I don't want to fight you, but if you come at me, I will."_

She wasn't suprised by his bluntness. She was used to his personality. She finally spoke.

_"You are a wanted criminal in the village. You abandoned us. You completely disregarded us as teammates and friends to accomplish your own, selfish goals. Naruto and I have dedicated so much time in an effort to show you how special your bond means to us. But all you did, was try to kill us."_

Not realizing the extent of her own feelings, she noticed tears were falling from her eyes. It was a whole mix of pain, lonliness, sorrow, joy, and love mixed together. She pulled out her own kunai, and rushed towards him.

_"I will end this Sasuke. You will be taken back to the village by me!!"_

Their kunai's clashed, and they were practically face to face. He didn't know what to think. Looking into her eyes filled with tears, and full of so much emotion, she began to overpower him slightly. He jumped back away from her. She charged at him, and he blocked all of her attacks, and backed her up against a tree.

_"I don't want to hurt you Sakura. Stop this now."_

They were once again face to face, looking eachother right in the eyes.

_"You already hurt me Sasuke!!!.... The day you walked away from me and our village."_

Being caught off guard by that statement, he let go off her, and jumped a few feet back away from her. As if losing feeling in both legs, she knelt to the ground and let go of her kunai. She stared at the ground and said everything that was on her mind.

_"You left me..all alone...You know that pain very well...don't you Sasuke?...It's been almost four years since you left...And you would think the pain would go away..but it doesn't, right?...It stays with you everyday of your life...It gets worse.....I should hate you for putting me through that pain..I should despise you..............But I don't, for whatever crazy reason.. I still love you..I shouldn't but I do..Why do you hate me so much?.... I just want to be with you."_

He absorbed every word she spoke, and watched her body tremble while she spoke. He knew she was being honest.

_"This is very similar to that night...."_

She looked up when he said that. He turned away from her.

_"I have my own goals, Sakura. There are things you don't know about..Things you shouldn't be involved in, or concerned with. This is the path I've chosen. I cannot accept your feelings."_

She was growing infurated at his reponse, and let out her feelings.

_"You'll regret not accepting love. You'll be misarable for the rest of your life...When you complete your goal, you'll have nothing left...then what, Sasuke?"_

He paused for a moment, and decided to be honest with her for the first time.

_"I remember everything you said to me that night, Sakura...... If things were different.......... But they're not, Sakura. You were always dedicated to me..and I really appreciated it though I did not show it. I've never been good at expressing myself ever since that incident, and I became a different person because of that incident. I made the choice to follow my own path. A dangerous path...one someone like you should never walk...I would never have been able to forgive myself if I involved you in that. "_

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She listened intently as he continued.

_"When I look back...I think of the "What could've beens..".......I wonder how things might have turned out, had I stayed.........But the fact is,...I left...for my own reasons, to follow my own path that had, and even today, has no purpose for "bonds" like the ones you and Naruto seek from me.......I can't turn back...There are still things I must do........."_

She took in every word he spoke. She mustered up some strenght back to her legs, and stood up. She knew there was nothing more she could say to convince him, and knowing how strong he was and how all over her emotions were at the time, a battle would be pointless. Sakura stared at Sasuke's back for a moment, and then spoke in a calm relaxed voice, almost resolved.

_"You were right when you said this is very similar to that night, Sasuke........I remember staring at your back,....just like I am right now....I wanted you to stay so badly...I loved it when you were around...and I wanted to make you happy....I know you won't stay....I understand you have your own goals,........But, I won't give up, Sasuke!...I love you....and I will always love you...I won't go back on my words...It's something I've picked up from 'him'....I might not agree with the path you have chosen, but I can't turn my back on you....and I know you don't want me to, but I'll wait for you...We will meet up again....I won't give up on you.. "_

He couldn't help but smile when she said this. Knowing his teammates would be looking for him, he knew it was about time he left.

_"Goodbye,.... Sakura......"_

He started walking away, and even though she spoke her true feelings, she reached out her hand, and tried to ask him not to leave, but the words just wouldn't come out. She put her arm down, and sighed in disappointment of herself not being able to say it. She looked up, and watched him walk away.

All of a sudden, in a flash, he disappeared from in front of her. She was surprised when she felt a slight wind on her side, and realized he was now behind her,.. just like that night.

_"Sakura....."_

He lightly grabbed her wrist, and turned her around where they were now face to face. They were looking into eachother's eyes. With his free hand, he gently touched her face, and then raised her chin slightly, and leaned in. She closed her eyes, and accepted his kiss.

When they finished, he pulled back slowly, looking into her eyes. His hand remained on her face for a moment until he began to step back, to make his departure. Neither one spoke, yet their eyes remained locked. In antoher flash, he was gone.

Just like that..they were separated, once again. Though each gained something very important from their encounter. They know they both care deeply for the other, although they currently walk different paths, they both understand they must continue walking until their paths finally come together as one.

Sakura looked up at the moon.

_"It sure is pretty tonight.......Goodbye... for now, Sasuke.."_

As he's moving, Sasuke glances up at the moon. He slightly grins.

_"Hmph..."_

-The End

by:angelbabe21

aka: Michele


End file.
